Microbattery with through-silicon via electrodes

ABSTRACT

Batteries include an anode structure, a cathode structure, and a conductive overcoat. The anode structure includes an anode substrate, an anode formed on the anode substrate, and an anode conductive liner that is in contact with the anode. The cathode structure includes a cathode substrate, a cathode formed on the cathode substrate, and a cathode conductive liner that is in contact with the cathode. The conductive overcoat is formed over the anode structure and the cathode structure to seal a cavity formed by the anode structure and the cathode structure. At least one of the anode substrate and the cathode substrate is pierced by through vias that are in contact with the respective anode conductive liner or cathode conductive liner.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

The present invention generally relates to batteries and, moregenerally, to microbatteries having electrical contacts that have metalovercoats and through-silicon via electrical contacts.

Description of the Related Art

There is growing demand for small, low-profile power sources havingcharge capacity on the order of, e.g., 1 mAh or less. While functionalbatteries of this size can be fabricated relatively easily, the smallphysical dimensions and low profile involved make it difficult to fullyand hermetically seal such batteries. Certain battery chemistries,particularly those based on lithium, cannot be exposed to moisture.Wet-chemistry batteries are sealed to retain water and otherelectrolytes.

Existing commercial solutions are either metal can type packages ofcylindrical symmetry with crimped seals, or flexible polymer packageswith very wide seal widths of several millimeters. Certain long-lifelithium ion batteries employ glass-to-metal seals to ensure fullhermeticity. However, very few packaging options exist for creating aquality seal of 100 μm width or less.

SUMMARY

A battery includes an anode structure, a cathode structure, and aconductive overcoat. The anode structure includes an anode substrate, ananode formed on the anode substrate, and an anode conductive liner thatis in contact with the anode. The cathode structure includes a cathodesubstrate, a cathode formed on the cathode substrate, and a cathodeconductive liner that is in contact with the cathode. The conductiveovercoat is formed over the anode structure and the cathode structure toseal a cavity formed by the anode structure and the cathode structure.At least one of the anode substrate and the cathode substrate is piercedby through vias that are in contact with the respective anode conductiveliner or cathode conductive liner.

These and other features and advantages will become apparent from thefollowing detailed description of illustrative embodiments thereof,which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosure will provide details in the following description ofpreferred embodiments with reference to the following figures wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagram with a cut-away of a microbattery structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of a step in the formation of a cathode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 3 is a diagram of a step in the formation of a cathode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a step in the formation of a cathode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 5 is a diagram of a step in the formation of a cathode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 6 is a diagram of a step in the formation of a cathode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 7 is a diagram of a step in the formation of a cathode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a step in the formation of a cathode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 9 is a diagram of a step in the formation of an anode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 10 is a diagram of a step in the formation of an anode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 11 is a diagram of a step in the formation of an anode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 12 is a diagram of a step in the formation of an anode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 13 is a diagram of a step in the formation of an anode structure inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 14 is a diagram of the formation of vertical battery walls inaccordance with the present principles;

FIG. 15 is a diagram of a step in the assembly of a microbatterystructure in accordance with the present principles;

FIG. 16 is a diagram of a step in the assembly of a microbatterystructure in accordance with the present principles;

FIG. 17 is a diagram of a step in the assembly of a microbatterystructure in accordance with the present principles;

FIG. 18 is a diagram of a step in the assembly of a microbatterystructure in accordance with the present principles;

FIG. 19 is a block/flow diagram of a method for forming a cathodestructure in accordance with the present principles;

FIG. 20 is a block/flow diagram of a method for forming an anodestructure in accordance with the present principles;

FIG. 21 is a block/flow diagram of a method for assembling amicrobattery structure in accordance with the present principles; and

FIG. 22 is a top-down view of a cathode structure in accordance with thepresent principles.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present invention provide microbatteries that use ametal coating for sealing the battery components from exposure to airand moisture. To accomplish this, electrical vias are formed through thebacks of the anode and cathode, so that electrical contact may be madefrom the top and bottom of the device, rather than from the side. Thisprovides electrical access without the risk of shorting the anode to thecathode through the metal coating.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a microbattery structure 100 is shown inaccordance with the present embodiments. The microbattery structure 100includes a three-piece construction that is based on the cathodestructure 102, walls 104, and anode structure 106. In an alternative,two-piece embodiment, the walls 104 may be integrally formed with thecathode structure 102 or the anode structure 106. The cathode structure102, the walls 104, and the anode structure 106 are bonded to oneanother by adhesive points 108.

A cathode 112 fills the space between the walls 104 and connects to thecathode structure 102. Similarly, an anode 114 connects to the anodestructure 106. An electrolyte-infused spacer 116 prevents the cathode112 from touching the anode 114 and provides a space for theelectrochemical reaction to take place. The microbattery structure 100is sealed within a metal case 110.

It should be understood that, instead of an adhesive 108, a metallicsolder joint may be used for the joint either between the anodestructure 106 and the walls 104 or between the walls 104 and the cathodestructure 102. Such a metal joint obviates the need for vias on itsrespective structure, as the conductive metal forms an electricalconnection between the respective structure and the metal case 110.Suitable metals for the metal joint may include, e.g., indium or a lowmelting point solder including indium, tin, lead, bismuth, cadmium,silver, gold, or a combination of the above. It is specificallycontemplated that indium, lead-tin eutectic solder, or gold may be used.In one particular embodiment, it is contemplated that an adhesive may beused to join the walls 104 to the cathode structure 102 and that a metaljoint may be used to join the anode structure 106 to the walls 104.

Vias 118 are formed in the cathode structure 102 and the anode structure106. The vias 118 include a conductive lining 120 and an insulating fill122. The vias 118 provide electrical access to the cathode 112 withouthaving to come into contact with the metal case 110. The vias 118 ensurean electrical connection between the anode 114 and the metal case 110for designs where the metal case 110 is part of the anode electrode andalso allow an option where the metal case 110 is electrically isolatedfrom the case, where gaps in the metal case 110 are provided to allowelectrical access.

In one embodiment, a diameter of the anode structure 106 is smaller thana diameter of the walls 104, which in turn is smaller than a diameter ofthe cathode structure 102. Each part thereby leaves exposed a rim ofmaterial from the part below it. This ensures that the metal case 110,the material for which is deposited from above, overcoats the adhesive108. With conformal metal depositions this may not be needed, and sosome embodiments will have diameters of the respective parts that arethe same.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a step in the formation of a cathode structure102 is shown. Wells 204 are formed in a substrate 202. It isspecifically contemplated that silicon may be used to form the substrate202, but it should be understood that any appropriate material may beused in its place. When semiconducting or conducting materials are usedfor the substrate, the substrate is coated with an insulating dielectric(FIG. 7, 704). Photolithography may be used to define the well patternand a deep reactive ion etch (DRIE) may be used to etch the wells 204 inthe substrate 202.

A photolithographic pattern is produced by applying a photoresist to thesurface to be etched; exposing the photoresist to a pattern ofradiation; and then developing the pattern into the photoresistutilizing a resist developer. Once the patterning of the photoresist iscompleted, the sections covered by the photoresist are protected whilethe exposed regions are removed using a selective etching process thatremoves the unprotected regions. As used herein, the term “selective” inreference to a material removal process denotes that the rate ofmaterial removal for a first material is greater than the rate ofremoval for at least another material of the structure to which thematerial removal process is being applied.

Reactive ion etching (RIE) is a form of plasma etching in which duringetching the surface to be etched is placed on a radio-frequency poweredelectrode. Moreover, during RIE the surface to be etched takes on apotential that accelerates the etching species extracted from plasmatoward the surface, in which the chemical etching reaction is takingplace in the direction normal to the surface. Other examples ofanisotropic etching that can be used at this point of the presentinvention include ion beam etching, plasma etching or laser ablation.DRIE is a form of plasma etching that may be used to form high aspectratio structures with vertical etch profiles. It is specificallycontemplated that a Bosch process may be used for the DRIE, althoughother embodiments are also contemplated.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a step in the formation of a cathode structure102 is shown. A liner 302 is formed in the wells 204 and on the surfaceof the substrate 202. It is specifically contemplated that the liner 302may be formed from titanium or titanium nitride, though it iscontemplated that other conductive liner materials may be used, such astantalum or tungsten. The liner 302 may have an exemplary thickness ofabout 300 nm to about 1,000 nm and is formed using a conformaldeposition process, such as chemical vapor deposition (CVD).

CVD is a deposition process in which a deposited species is formed as aresult of chemical reaction between gaseous reactants at greater thanroom temperature (e.g., from about 25° C. about 900° C.). The solidproduct of the reaction is deposited on the surface on which a film,coating, or layer of the solid product is to be formed. Variations ofCVD processes include, but are not limited to, Atmospheric Pressure CVD(APCVD), Low Pressure CVD (LPCVD), Plasma Enhanced CVD (PECVD), andMetal-Organic CVD (MOCVD) and combinations thereof may also be employed.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a step in the formation of a cathode structure102 is shown. A fill 402 is formed in the wells 204 from, e.g., abonding polymer. The fill 402 is formed by, e.g., bonding the surface ofthe substrate 202 to another surface to force the bonding polymer intothe wells 204 and then debonding the other surface. It is specificallycontemplated that the fill 402 may be formed using an insulatingmaterial, although non-insulating embodiments are also contemplated.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a step in the formation of a cathode structure102 is shown. Additional metal is conformally deposited on the liner 302and over the wells 204. The additional metal may have a thickness ofabout 300 nm and may be formed from a titanium seed layer or,alternatively, a multilayer of titanium, copper, and titanium or oftitanium, nickel, copper, and hold. Further metal such as copper and/ornickel can be deposited by electroplating through a photoresist mask toform a cathode contact pad for the battery. The seed metal not under thepad can be removed with RIE or a wet etch using the electroplated metalas a hard mask.

Electroplating processes include depositing a thin blanket of seed metaland masking the seed metal with a photoresist to leave exposed only theregions where metal is needed. Metal is then plated onto the exposedmetal regions to create a metal region that does not extend into regionswithout exposed seed metal. The photoresist is then stripped and theseed layer is removed in the previously covered areas using a wet or dryetch or using RIE. The plated film is thicker than the seed layer, sothe seed layer disappears first in the etch.

Referring now to FIG. 6, a step in the formation of a cathode structure102 is shown. The substrate 202 is bonded to a handler 602 that may beformed from any appropriate material such as, e.g., glass or silicon.The bond is formed using, for example, a polymer bonding agent 604,though it should be understood that any suitable bonding agent may beused. The substrate 202 is then thinned down to thinned substrate 606using any appropriate process such as, e.g., chemical mechanicalplanarization.

CMP is performed using, e.g., a chemical or granular slurry andmechanical force to gradually remove upper layers of the device. Theslurry may be formulated to be unable to dissolve, for example, the workfunction metal layer material, resulting in the CMP process's inabilityto proceed any farther than that layer.

Referring now to FIG. 7, a step in the formation of a cathode structure102 is shown. Isolation channels 702 are formed in the thinned substrate606 using, e.g., photolithographic patterning and DRIE to form cathodesubstrate 706. An oxide layer 704 may be formed in the isolationchannels 702 and on the top surface of the cathode substrate 706. Theoxide layer may be formed using any appropriate oxidation process andmay be initially formed across the entire surface of the cathodesubstrate 706 and then patterned to expose regions of the surface of thecathode substrate 706 above the wells 204.

Referring now to FIG. 8, a step in the formation of a cathode structure102 is shown. The exposed portions of the cathode substrate 706 areetched down below the level of the via fill 402 and an additional layerof liner material is formed on the exposed surfaces to form liner 802.As noted above, it is specifically contemplated that the liner 802 maybe formed from, e.g., titanium or titanium nitride.

After the liner 802 has been formed, adhesive seal rings 804 around thebattery cavity are formed by, e.g., spinning on a photopatternablepolymer thermoplastic adhesive. The adhesive material is exposed,developed, and cured to form the adhesive ring 804. It should be notedthat, in an alternative embodiment, the adhesive rings 804 may beapplied to, e.g., walls 104.

Referring now to FIG. 22, a top-down view of the cathode structure 102is shown. As can be seen from this view, the adhesive forms a ring 804around the entire center area of the cathode, thereby forming a hermeticseal when assembled.

Referring now to FIG. 9, a step in the formation of an anode structure106 is shown. Formation of the anode structure 106 to this point followsFIGS. 2, 3, and 4 above, with the formation of wells in a substrate 902,the conformal deposition of a liner 904 in the wells, and the formationof fill 906 in the wells over the liner 904. The substrate 902 is thenbonded to handler 908 using, for example, a polymer bonding agent 908.The polymer bonding agent may, in one embodiment, be used to form thefill 906 by forcing the bonding agent into the wells.

Referring now to FIG. 10, a step in the formation of an anode structure106 is shown. Isolation channels 1002 are formed in the substrate 902using, e.g., photolithographic patterning and RIE. Additional etching isperformed to expose the vias' liner 904 and to form alignment rim 1006.The anode structure 1004 remains.

Referring now to FIG. 11, a step in the formation of an anode structure106 is shown. Additional material 1102 is conformally deposited on theliner 904 and may have a thickness of about 300 nm to about 1,000 nm.The additional material 1102 may be formed from a titanium seed layeror, alternatively, a multilayer of titanium, copper and/or nickel, andtitanium. Other metals may be used instead, as appropriate.

Referring now to FIG. 12, a step in the formation of an anode structure106 is shown. Anode 1202 is plated on, using the additional material1102 as a seed layer. A photoresist mask may be patterned to createopenings where the anode material is to be deposited. A layer of, e.g.,zinc or any other suitable anode material is electroplated and thephotomask is removed. In one specific embodiment, the seed layer 1102may be electroplated with a homogeneous solid that includes indium,bismuth, and zinc to form the anode 1202. The concentration of bismuthmay be about 100 ppm to about 1,000 ppm, the concentration of indium maybe about 100 ppm to about 1,000 ppm, and the remainder may be zinc.Alternatively, the anode 1202 may be formed from pure zinc. It iscontemplated that the anode may have an exemplary thickness betweenabout 1 μm and about 50 μm thick, but other thicknesses may be used asappropriate. Excess material from the seed layer 1102 may also beremoved using the RIE process.

Referring now to FIG. 13, a step in the formation of an anode structure106 is shown. Adhesive seal rings 1302 are formed by, e.g., spinning ona photopatternable polymer thermoplastic adhesive. The adhesive materialis exposed, developed, and cured to form the pads 804. It should benoted that, in an alternative embodiment, the adhesive pads 1302 may beapplied to, e.g., walls 104.

In an alternative embodiment, the adhesive pads 1302 may be replaced bya metallic joint (e.g., formed from indium), with the seed layer 1102optionally being left in place. This can provide alternative electricalaccess to the anode 106.

Referring now to FIG. 14, the formation of the walls 104 is shown. Asubstrate layer of, e.g., silicon, is bonded to a handler 1402 made of,e.g., glass using an adhesive 1404. The substrate is then etched using adirectional etch such as RIE to form walls 1406. A dielectric layer 1408is formed using, e.g., CVD to form a layer between about 0.5 μm andabout 1.0 μm thick. The dielectric layer 1408 may be formed from, e.g.,silicon dioxide or silicon nitride.

Referring now to FIG. 15, a step in the assembly of the microbatterystructure 100 is shown. The wall handler 1402 is used to position thewalls 1406 above the adhesive layer 804 of the cathode structure 102.The walls 1406 are thereby bonded to the cathode structure 102. Thewalls 1406 may be sealed to the cathode structure 102 by applying highpressure and/or heat. In one exemplary embodiment, pressures betweenabout 0.1 MPa and about 10 MPa may be used for a seal area on the orderof about 100 mm².

Referring now to FIG. 16, a step in the assembly of the microbatterystructure 100 is shown. The adhesive holding the wall handler 1402 ontothe walls 1406 is ablated with a laser through the glass handler and thewall handler 1402 is removed. The remaining handler adhesive can then beremoved by ashing. The space between the walls is filled with cathodematerial 1602. In one embodiment, the cathode material 1602 may beformed from manganese dioxide, but it should be understood that anyappropriate cathode material may be used instead. Cathode material 1602can be electroplated nickel hydroxide or a mixture of manganese dioxide,with or without a binder. An electrolyte solution such as, e.g., zincchloride may be added as well.

Referring now to FIG. 17, a step in the assembly of the microbatterystructure 100 is shown. A spacer 116 is formed or placed on the anode1202 and the anode handler 908 is used to position the anode structure1004 such that alignment rim 1006 aligns with the walls 1406. Theadhesive pads 1302 contact the walls 1406 to bond the anode structure1004 onto the walls 1406.

The spacer 116 may be infused with an electrolyte material. In anexemplary embodiment, the electrolyte material may include one or moreof ammonium chloride, an aqueous salt solution such as potassiumhydroxide, zinc chloride, or zinc acetate with an additive such as zincoxide. The spacer 116 may be formed from, for example, a flexible porousmaterial, a gel, or a sheet having an exemplary thickness between about10 μm and about 100 μm formed from cellulose, cellophane, polyvinylacetate (PVA), a PVA/cellulose blend, polyethylene, polypropylene, or amixture of polyethylene and polypropylene. In one embodiment, the spacer116 may be deposited by dispensing the electrolyte material. Theelectrolyte material may be deposited using an ink jet, roboticplacement, or a spin-on process.

Referring now to FIG. 18, a step in the assembly of the microbatterystructure 100 is shown. A metal overcoat 1802 is applied to thestructure, forming an electrical contact with the top vias and liner904. The metal overcoat 1802 thereby provides electrical access to anode106. The cathode handler 602 may be removed to separate the completemicrobattery structure 100 and expose the cathode liner 502, which actsas the cathode contact. As noted above, the metal overcoat 1802 may beapplied from above or may be applied conformally using, e.g., ALD, CVD,LPCVD, or sputtering instead.

Although it is specifically contemplated that the metal overcoat maycover every surface except the bottom of the cathode structure 102, itshould be understood that an alternative embodiment may leave the top ofthe anode structure 106 exposed instead.

It is to be understood that the present invention will be described interms of a given illustrative architecture; however, otherarchitectures, structures, substrate materials and process features andsteps may be varied within the scope of the present invention.

It will also be understood that when an element such as a layer, regionor substrate is referred to as being “on” or “over” another element, itcan be directly on the other element or intervening elements may also bepresent. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directlyon” or “directly over” another element, there are no interveningelements present. It will also be understood that when an element isreferred to as being “connected” or “coupled” to another element, it canbe directly connected or coupled to the other element or interveningelements may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to asbeing “directly connected” or “directly coupled” to another element,there are no intervening elements present.

The present embodiments may include a design for an integrated circuitchip, which may be created in a graphical computer programming language,and stored in a computer storage medium (such as a disk, tape, physicalhard drive, or virtual hard drive such as in a storage access network).If the designer does not fabricate chips or the photolithographic masksused to fabricate chips, the designer may transmit the resulting designby physical means (e.g., by providing a copy of the storage mediumstoring the design) or electronically (e.g., through the Internet) tosuch entities, directly or indirectly. The stored design is thenconverted into the appropriate format (e.g., GDSII) for the fabricationof photolithographic masks, which typically include multiple copies ofthe chip design in question that are to be formed on a wafer. Thephotolithographic masks are utilized to define areas of the wafer(and/or the layers thereon) to be etched or otherwise processed.

Methods as described herein may be used in the fabrication of integratedcircuit chips. The resulting integrated circuit chips can be distributedby the fabricator in raw wafer form (that is, as a single wafer that hasmultiple unpackaged chips), as a bare die, or in a packaged form. In thelatter case the chip is mounted in a single chip package (such as aplastic carrier, with leads that are affixed to a motherboard or otherhigher level carrier) or in a multichip package (such as a ceramiccarrier that has either or both surface interconnections or buriedinterconnections). In any case the chip is then integrated with otherchips, discrete circuit elements, and/or other signal processing devicesas part of either (a) an intermediate product, such as a motherboard, or(b) an end product. The end product can be any product that includesintegrated circuit chips, ranging from toys and other low-endapplications to advanced computer products having a display, a keyboardor other input device, and a central processor.

Reference in the specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” ofthe present principles, as well as other variations thereof, means thata particular feature, structure, characteristic, and so forth describedin connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodimentof the present principles. Thus, the appearances of the phrase “in oneembodiment” or “in an embodiment”, as well any other variations,appearing in various places throughout the specification are notnecessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

It is to be appreciated that the use of any of the following “/”,“and/or”, and “at least one of”, for example, in the cases of “A/B”, “Aand/or B” and “at least one of A and B”, is intended to encompass theselection of the first listed option (A) only, or the selection of thesecond listed option (B) only, or the selection of both options (A andB). As a further example, in the cases of “A, B, and/or C” and “at leastone of A, B, and C”, such phrasing is intended to encompass theselection of the first listed option (A) only, or the selection of thesecond listed option (B) only, or the selection of the third listedoption (C) only, or the selection of the first and the second listedoptions (A and B) only, or the selection of the first and third listedoptions (A and C) only, or the selection of the second and third listedoptions (B and C) only, or the selection of all three options (A and Band C). This may be extended, as readily apparent by one of ordinaryskill in this and related arts, for as many items listed.

Referring now to FIG. 19, a method of forming a cathode structure 102 isshown. Block 1902 forms wells 204 in a substrate 202 using, e.g.,photolithography and RIE. Block 1904 conformally forms a conductiveliner 302 in the wells 204 and block 1906 fills the wells 204 with,e.g., a polymer fill 402. The polymer fill may be formed by bonding thesubstrate 202 to a surface to force polymer adhesive into the wells 402.

Block 1908 forms an additional layer of conductor 502 over the exposedends of the wells 204. This conductor 502 may be formed from the samematerial as the liner 302 or may be any other appropriate conductivematerial, forming a cathode contact in the finished device.

Block 1910 bonds the substrate 202 to a handler 602 using, e.g.,adhesive 604. The substrate 202 is patterned in block 1912 and block1914 exposes the vias with a further etch. Block 1916 forms a layer ofadditional conductor material 802 on the exposed vias and block 1918forms adhesive seal rings.

Referring now to FIG. 20, a method of forming an anode structure 106 isshown. Block 2002 forms wells 204 in a substrate 202 and block 2004forms a conductive liner 302 in the wells 204. In block 2006 the wells2004 are filled with a polymer 906 and in block 2008 the substrate 202is bonded to a handler 908. In one embodiment, blocks 2006 and 2008 maybe combined, with the bonding adhesive being forced into the wells toform the polymer fill 906.

Block 2010 patterns the anode structure 1004 from the substrate,exposing the vias. Block 2012 forms a seed layer over the anodestructure 1004 and vias so that block 2014 can form the anode 1202 onthe seed layer using, e.g., electroplating and a photolithographyprocess. Block 2016 forms adhesive pads 1302 on the anode structure1004. Block 2018 then forms the spacer 104 on the anode 1202, with thespacer 104 including a structural material and an electrolytic material.

Referring now to FIG. 21, a method of constructing a microbatterystructure 100 is shown. Block 2102 forms the cathode structure 102, forexample as described in FIG. 19 above. Block 2104 forms the anodestructure 106, for example as described in FIG. 20 above. Block 2106forms the walls 104 by, for example, etching appropriately sized wallsfrom a silicon substrate that is bonded to a handler.

Block 2108 bonds the walls 104 to the cathode structure 102, usingadhesive and pressure to form the bond. Once the walls 104 are attached,cathode 1602 is formed in the cavity in block 2110. Block 2112 bonds theanode structure 106 to the walls 104. Block 2114 then forms a metalovercoat 1802 over the stack. The metal overcoat 108 forms an anodecontact and the conductor 502 is left exposed on the bottom, forming acathode contact. It should be noted that the order of assembly may bereversed, with the walls 104 being attached first to the anode structure106 and with the cathode 102 being attached last.

Having described preferred embodiments of a microbattery withthrough-silicon via electrodes (which are intended to be illustrativeand not limiting), it is noted that modifications and variations can bemade by persons skilled in the art in light of the above teachings. Itis therefore to be understood that changes may be made in the particularembodiments disclosed which are within the scope of the invention asoutlined by the appended claims. Having thus described aspects of theinvention, with the details and particularity required by the patentlaws, What is claimed and desired protected by Letters Patent is setforth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A battery, comprising: an anode structure,comprising: an anode substrate; an anode formed on the anode substrate;an anode conductive liner that is in contact with the anode; and anodethrough vias that pierce the anode substrate and that are in contactwith the anode conductive liner; a cathode structure, comprising: acathode substrate; a cathode formed on the cathode substrate; a cathodeconductive liner that is in contact with the cathode; and cathodethrough vias that pierce the cathode substrate and that are in contactwith the cathode conductive liner; and a conductive overcoat formed overthe anode structure and the cathode structure to seal a cavity formed bythe anode structure and the cathode structure, wherein at least one ofthe anode substrate and the cathode substrate is pierced by through viasthat are in contact with the respective anode conductive liner orcathode conductive liner.
 2. The battery of claim 1, wherein only one ofthe group consisting of the anode through vias and the cathode throughvias is in electrical contact with the conductive overcoat.
 3. Thebattery of claim 1, wherein the through vias comprise an insulating fillthat seals the respective vias.
 4. The battery of claim 3, wherein theinsulating fill comprises a polymer adhesive.
 5. The battery of claim 1,wherein the conductive overcoat leaves an external surface of the anodestructure exposed.
 6. The battery of claim 1, wherein the conductiveovercoat leaves an external surface of the cathode structure exposed. 7.The battery of claim 1, further comprising vertical walls that separatethe anode structure from the cathode structure.
 8. The battery of claim7, wherein a joint between the anode structure and the vertical walls isa metallic joint and wherein a joint between the vertical walls and thecathode structure is a polymer adhesive.
 9. The battery of claim 1,wherein the cathode substrate has a greater diameter than the anodesubstrate, such that a rim of exposed cathode substrate is exposed at apoint of contact between the anode and the cathode.